A/N: Whew! Sorry for the lateness of updates. It's been super hectic and my schedule is out of control. Not to mention I'm going to Sardis again in a couple of weeks (that's where I was before) and I never have time to write out there because we're always visiting grandma. So, the story won't be updated once every five days now. I can't precisely say when the updates will occur. Important info at the bottom. THIS STORY HAS THE KINKATIA SEAL OF APPROVAL. Nothing will ever be updated without first being checked by Kinkatia, mistress of randomness.

Chapter 21

Over the course of one week, Takemaru began to notice a difference in Izayoi's behavior. She suddenly developed a taste for sticky rice, which she often claimed to hate with a fierce passion. She also grew restless easily and snapped at him occasionally. He couldn't help but wonder whether that was because of his threat or just ordinary pregnancy mood swings. Probably both, for all he knew.

Izayoi, however, was as miserable as miserable could be. It was becoming apparent that this pregnancy was going to be a difficult one. She was becoming sick again and only water and bland, barely cooked rice were the only two things she was able to keep down. She knew that she would feel much better and safer if InuTaisho were around, but he hadn't returned yet. She was becoming worried. What if Takemaru had already sent out a hunting party? His men had trapped the demon lord once, and InuTaisho had done it on purpose. According to her zany lover, he'd been bored waiting to visit her and decided to get himself tangled up in the net.

She chuckled at this memory, how ridiculous he'd been that night. Then he'd had the nerve to annoy her later on. But she knew that somewhat deep down, she appreciated his good affections toward her. It was a miracle romance between two creatures from opposite worlds who were determined to make it work out.

" What will I do when I tell him the danger our baby is in?" she whispered, placing a hand on her belly. She'd been horrified to learn that very morning during her early bathing that she already had a slight bulge in her abdomen, after only a month. She made a note to ask him how long it took for demonic infants to be born after conception. Obviously, it wasn't as long as a human baby.

Izayoi thought about all of this as she made her way to her father's room to pay him a visit. He was recovering nicely and he'd recognized her the last time she'd come to visit him. He no longer called her Nanami.

She knocked on his door and he feebly called for her to enter. She slid the screen open and stepped inside. " Father?"

" Izayoi!" he exclaimed. She was surprised to see he was sitting up. " How nice to see you, come in."

He was still deathly pale and his face was frighteningly gaunt, but he was no longer in danger of dying. No one was quite sure what he'd contracted. But now, it no longer mattered.

Izayoi took a seat beside him. " I'm so glad you are doing better." Izayoi remarked. She'd made the decision to tell him this night and knew he probably wouldn't take the news lightly. " I have some news, Father."

" Ah. Good. About Takemaru, I presume?"

Izayoi made a face. " Um, sort of. You see father, I am with child, now."

Koeske's face only altered slightly. Apparently, he wasn't as recovered as she thought, for he simply hummed and rested his head against the wall. " Is that so?" he said. " Congratulations, Izayoi."

Yes, he definitely was still delirious. But at least he knew of his future grandchild.

" Father, are you feeling better?" she asked, suddenly wary of the subject and anxious to change to something else.

" I have sensed something strange. A strange presence." He mumbled. Izayoi cocked an eyebrow at this. " Pardon?"

" A strange presence." He repeated. " Takemaru."

Izayoi was confused by this sudden change of tone on her father's part. Slightly disturbed, she reached forward and tucked the blanket around his shoulders. " Um, father, you rest, a little. I am going to bed."
As she was preparing to get up, his hand lashed out and grasped her wrist, pulling her back down. His eyes were clouded, as though he were asleep, but he seemed perfectly aware of her.

" Do not follow. Do not allow yourself to fall, Izayoi!" he said fiercely. Izayoi was becoming truly scared now and tried to pull away. " Father, what's wrong with you?" she exclaimed.

" Do not fall, Izayoi." He repeated, before releasing her hand and falling back against the wall with a sigh. Izayoi stared at him a moment, her heart beating wildly before she stood up and slowly made her way to the door. She stepped outside and shut it behind her. Without a word, she slowly proceeded toward her own room.

Izayoi stepped out onto the balcony and shut the door behind her. She had to be extra quiet. Takemaru was getting crafty.

She could already sense the demon's presence, but she couldn't place it. She glanced around carefully.

" InuTaisho?" she called softly.

" Up here." He replied in the same tone. She looked up. Apparently, he was lying on his stomach on the roof, watching her. He lowered his hand to her and pulled her up when she took it.

" InuTaisho, we have to stay out of sight. Takemaru is furious, now." She warned.

" I understand."

After checking to make sure none of the guards were looking up, they both made their way to the center of the roof, away from ground vision. He took a seat and she followed suit, folding her legs beneath her.

" You know," she said. " The last time we came up here, we'd just met."

" It seems like so long ago." He commented. She nodded. " Yes. We have much to lose now."

She shuffled over and leaned against him, closing her eyes. " But we won't lose."

" No." he replied.

They fell silent for a moment.

" InuTaisho," she said. " How long will it be?"

" For the pup? I'd say about four or five months." He said.

" Really? That short?" she exclaimed.

" Why?"

" I discovered it's already visible." She said quietly. " This morning."

He smiled. " That's great. It shouldn't be too much longer."

She sighed. " Why is that?"

" It's because it will be a half-demon. Pregnancy rates with demons vary with the type of demon the mother is, most of the time. In this case, it's determined by what kind of demon I am, seeing as you are human."

" I see." She replied. " I'm still scared though. Takemaru told me he'd tolerate it until it was born. And then…and then he'd kill it."

InuTaisho growled warningly. " Like hell he will." He snarled. " He won't get the chance. I'm going to take you away before then, so you can have the child safely."

Izayoi grimaced. " But Takemaru is unpredictable. He may attack the household should I leave in an attempt to force me to come back. He says he's going to hunt you down and even you can't last forever under pressure, especially if he uses me to get to you."

InuTaisho considered this. " You make a fine point, Izayoi. It seems that Takemaru could do something like that. There's already so much to deal with anyway."

She looked away sadly. " I know."

" Izayoi," he said suddenly. " I must warn you. It came to me now. There is a new demon in this region."

" New demon?"

" Yes. An enormous dragon called Ryukotsusei. He is the Lord of The North and he hopes to ensnare the western lands. Should he attack and I am forced to fight him, I will not be able to return for awhile. I can only hope that he will not attack anytime soon, especially in the upcoming months. I cannot guarantee he will remain neutral up until past the time of the pup's birth, but I certainly hope I will not have to leave. If I'm not here, our pup will die."

Izayoi bowed her head, tears sliding down her face. " I want you to be there. It isn't allowed, but you will protect us. I can't bear to have this child die because Takemaru is such a blind fool."

She allowed her bangs to cover her eyes, though she was unable to mask the sharp scent of her tears.

InuTaisho sighed. " Everything will be fine." He assured her. " Somehow."

Several days passed. Takemaru grew increasingly protective of Izayoi and refused to leave her side for the better part of a day three suns after InuTaisho had departed. He finally agreed to allow her some privacy when Minako lost her temper.

" Takemaru, this has gone far enough!" she yelled, flailing her fists, her eyes blazing in anger. " The lady is with child and the last thing she needs is you fussing over her like a hen and for all the wrong reasons!!"

" Minako," Takemaru growled angrily. " I am simply looking out for Izayoi's welfare. As you say, she is with child, and seeing how she is my fiancée, it is my duty to protect her."

" That may be so. Protect her, yes. Smother her, no. Izayoi has told me you do not allow her three feet of space wherever she goes. That is completely unreasonable and I forbid you contact with her for three days to allow her air."

" Lady Minako, that's—" Takemaru protested. Minako shushed him.

" Not a single word. Because of her father's illness, I am in charge of her welfare. But Lord Koeske is recovering nicely and as soon as he's able to listen, I will request that you be sent to Setsuna until after the birth of the child. Then the wedding can go as planned. Now, leave us, or I shall summon one of our more loyal guards."

Takemaru glowered viciously at her, but he kept his mouth closed and turned away. Minako nodded and turned around. Izayoi was standing behind her, her usual spark of defiance against Takemaru absent due to her pregnancy.

" Thank you, but you didn't need to." She said quietly. Minako smiled and raised her finger. " Hush, Izayoi. You couldn't have stood up to him in your state. As you get further, it gets harder. Come, let's go and pay your father a visit, shall we?"

She put her hand on Izayoi's shoulder and led her down the hallway toward her father's room.

Meanwhile, InuTaisho was hovering on his cloud in the air, scanning the hillside for the one thing he hated the most right now.

Ryukotsusei.

Myoga sat on his shoulder. " Can you sense his demonic energy, master?" he asked. InuTaisho hummed and nodded. " Yes. It's very strong. Ryukotsusei is no longer in the northern regions. He is in my domain at present."

" Will this be a problem?" Myoga asked.
" I honestly don't know, my friend. Ryukotsusei is a different demon. I am unsure of his intentions in my lands."

" Perhaps you should make a challenge." Myoga suggested. " Try to drive him away."

InuTaisho shook his head. " I cannot do that. The northern domain is very unstable and warlike. This is why it is uninhabited by either demons, or humans. Nothing much is known of the northern domain except that it is ruled by dragon demons."

Myoga's eyes went wide. " Dragon demons, master?"

" Yes. Powerful ones, driven to the north by humans fearful of their power. Because so little is known about them, even I have cause to fear them. Especially now." InuTaisho said quietly. " I cannot risk a battle and my health. I must focus my attention on Izayoi and our pup. If I am not there when her time comes, than our pup will die. I must be there no matter what." He declared with a snarl.

" How long will it be, master?" Myoga asked.

" Another four months or so." InuTaisho replied. " It won't be too long. But who knows what can happen to Izayoi in that time? I never cease to worry for her." He said quietly, looking away. Myoga didn't know what to say to this, so he fell silent.

Suddenly, InuTaisho turned. " I must go to Hosenki. I must retrieve the Black Pearl from him immediately."

He turned in the direction of the demon's lake and started off.

As he did, he imagined he felt a strange tug on his heart, that almost made him turn around and hurry to Izayoi's home. But it wasn't a terrifying feeling, so she couldn't be in trouble.

Still, he knew he had to hurry.

Takemaru narrowed his eyes as he lifted the object from the floor and stared at it. He fingered the tip gently, watching as his blood oozed from a small prick where it met the tip. He was going to take matters into his own hands. He could not let that child live and he could not let that damned demon claim his Izayoi. He was going to do something about this tonight. Izayoi and Minako would be visiting Koeske, but they would soon go to bed. They wouldn't hear him as he carried out his plan.

" I'll stop this now, Izayoi." He whispered, getting to his feet. He made his way to the door and stepped out, holding the object at his side. He carefully glanced from side to side, making sure no one was about. Then, he slowly padded down the hallway.

A few minutes later, he heard the servant girl Makoto approach. She was carrying a small load of laundry to wash. She stopped when she saw him.

" Lord Takemaru." She said. " Why are you out at such a late hour?" she asked him.

" I was walking." He said. " Do you wish for some assistance?" he asked in regard to her load.

" That would be much appreciated." She said. He nodded and took some of the load from her. " Lead." He said. " I do not know where you need to be."

" Of course." She said. He followed her through the castle as she seemingly made her way toward Koeske's chambers. As he guessed, this was where she'd been heading.

" To collect laundry." She explained. " Shh. He may be sleeping, so be very quiet while I go in."

She set the pile down and opened the door. Takemaru's eyes narrowed as he watched her enter.

He set his pile down, too.

Izayoi sat beside her window and stared out at the moon sadly. She was so worried for her baby, she'd made herself sick. She was starving, but she couldn't keep anything down, so she'd given up for the moment. Minako had gone to sleep against the door in case Takemaru should try to pull any more hearings. She'd even moved her own pallet into Izayoi's room to keep watch. Izayoi was quite grateful for this, but she was still worried. Takemaru hated Minako. He wouldn't hesitate to kill her if he became irritated enough. Izayoi knew that she only had a few remaining loyal members of the household on her side. Kinta, Sachiko, Makoto, Minako and her father. All the rest had joined Takemaru to protect their own lives and if she were someone else, she'd hate them for it. But she could never hate them. They still cared for her, even though they could no longer support her. She'd grown up around most of them, they were her family.

" Why did my life become so complicated?" she whispered. She looked out the window again.

" InuTaisho, please hurry."

A/N: All right, I figure that the updates should happen at least once a week. That's how I hope to do it. This chapter is shorter, but there are important points here and I can't let them slip. I'm also working on a Yu-Gi-Oh fic called Of Life and Arrangements that will be up at some point. That's for those of you who are into the show. But I have to finish this first. Also, my Avatar story is at a roadblock and I can't say when that will be updated, but I'm doing my best, so bear with me.

And many, many thanks to all of you who haven't given up on me. There are too many to name, but thank you so much. Especially SilentMoonDemon. Your extreme hyperness is amazing.